Blog INTRO

Hey 7^th Grade!

Welcome to our Blog J

I'm so excited to get this going! You guys blew me away with your commitment to class discussions throughout Chains, so I wholeheartedly believe you are ready to take it to the next level - - putting your thoughts out into the blogging world. With this comes a bit of added responsibility, but I know you guys can handle it (and we will talk much more about this in detail in class).

LEARNING GOALS for blogging:

-        analyze how the author uses characters, setting, plot, or a literary device to create deeper meaning

-        produce clear and coherent writing in which development, organization, and style are appropriate to purpose & audience

-        use technology to produce/publish writing while interacting with others

LOGISTICS of blogging: Instead of submitting answers to Walsh-created discussion questions on OneNote for each section of our novel Of Mice and Men, you all will be engaging in discussion here on our blog! But here's the catch... this means I need YOU to spur discussion. This will be done by writing a thoughtful reflection after each section of the novel that encourages your classmates to respond! And then, of course, you will write an insightful response to a classmate's post. You will find more information about the requirements below.

***Confession: I will still post some discussion questions J They are OPTIONAL and will primarily serve to help your mind focus on certain ideas & topics as you read (so it’s a good idea to preview them before reading). And while you are welcome to respond to them, you are also highly encouraged to create your own topics for discussion as well as follow-up questions to pose to your classmates. 

TIPS for blogging:

• Please use professional font (style, size, color)
• There is a spell check option (use it!) and be sure to reread your post before publishing to make sure it reads fluently and professionally.

·        While blogging certainly has a more casual feel and tone, students must remain professional in language (no technology slang - - i.e. LOL, OMG, u instead of you, etc.) Blogs will be graded on content as well as grammar and conventions.

• Unlike google docs, blogger does not auto-save! Be sure to click save several times while you are working on your post.
• When your post is finalized, you must publish in order for your classmates & teacher to view/comment.

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Grading:

Students will complete two blog posts for a formative grade and feedback; from then on students will be graded summatively on the remaining four blogs.

Assessed Goal / Possible Topics:

Writer engages in profound analysis of how the author uses characters, setting, plot, or a literary device (foreshadowing, symbolism, irony, theme) to create deeper meaning.

	ADVANCED Above expectations 4 points	ACHIEVING Meets all expectations 4 points	DEVELOPING Meets some expectations 2 points	AREA OF CONCERN Not meeting expectations 1 point or 0
Content & Analysis - Blog presents profound analysis of a specific topic: characters, setting, plot, or a literary device (foreshadowing, symbolism, irony, theme) - Blog uses text evidence (a balance of direct quotes & paraphrasing) to support ideas - Blog ensures reader’s understanding by elaborating sufficiently on ideas and evidence
Qualities of writing - Blog is organized in an effective manner - Style is appealing and appropriate for intended audience - Writing reflects author’s unique personality through carefully selected word choice - Blog is free from grammatical, spelling or punctuation errors - Blog contains varying sentence structures

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COMMENTING on blogs:

To achieve our goal of technological collaboration, you will also have the opportunity (and responsibility) of commenting on your peers’ blog posts. Class time will be provided to accomplish this task, but you are welcome to engage in blog comments outside of class as well. The more discussion the better!

The purpose of comments is NOT to simply complement the blog’s author (ex. “Cool blog!” or “Wow I never thought of that; you’re so smart”). Rather, comments should be thoughtful, lengthy, and should include profound thinking that serves to further your own understanding of the book as well as others’ who may read that blog/comment. This is a good opportunity to agree with someone else’s perspective by going deeper into their analysis or presenting a related idea OR you may want to disagree with someone else’s perspective (which is fine as long as it’s approached respectfully).